BackgroundN-terminal pro-brain-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is currently used as a surrogate marker for disease severity in pulmonary hypertension (PH). However, NT-proBNP tends to have a high variability and may insufficiently correlate with hemodynamics and exercise capacity.MethodsTo investigate the association of NT-proBNP with hemodynamics and cardio-pulmonary exercise testing (CPET) in 84 therapy-naive patients with precapillary PH.ResultsNT-proBNP levels were significantly correlated with hemodynamics and CPET parameters except for cardiac index, diffusion capacity, PaO2 at peak exercise, and peak minute ventilation. NT-proBNP correlated best with hemodynamics and CPET in women and patients >65 years. NT-proBNP correlated better with CPET in pulmonary arterial hypertension compared to chronic thromboembolic PH (CTEPH).ConclusionNT-proBNP is associated with disease severity in precapillary PH. The association might be age- and gender-dependent. NT-proBNP may insufficiently correlate with disease severity in CTEPH, possibly due to comorbidity.

BackgroundWhile the N-terminal pro-brain-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) at rest is known to be associated with prognosis in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), it is unclear if the NT-proBNP response to exercise (ΔNT-proBNP) can contribute to a better assessment of disease severity.MethodsWe investigated the association of NT-proBNP values at rest and during peak exercise with hemodynamics and cardiopulmonary exercise testing parameters in 63 therapy-naive PAH patients.ResultsThe median NT-proBNP increases from 1414 at rest to 1500 pg/ml at peak exercise. The ΔNT-proBNP is baseline-dependent in PAH. Both, NT-proBNP at rest and NT-proBNP at peak exercise, are significantly correlated with hemodynamics and functional capacity. However, neither NT-proBNP at peak exercise nor ΔNT-proBNP correlated better with surrogate markers of disease severity than NT-proBNP at rest.ConclusionThe ΔNT-proBNP does not contribute to a better assessment of disease severity in PAH.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12931-017-0712-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.